A Taste of Honey
by Lady Rosamunde
Summary: Kitlana Wood is pretty, only not pretty-pretty. She's smart. She's brave. She's also a self-proclaimed train wreck and is always overshadowed by everyone around her. Sirius Black is smart, popular, and extraordinarily good looking. He's also completely and forever in love with Kitlana Wood.   Inspired by the amazing romance by Garret Freyman-Weyr.
1. I Lost My Little Girl

**A Taste of Honey**

**by ~ Princess Rosamunde **

**Chapter One: I Lost My Little Girl**

My name's Kit. It's short for a kind of strange name, although it's not hard to pronounce: Kitlana. I don't know how I ended up with that name. Whenever I've asked, my da would tell me to ask my mother. Mum would sigh and say it was a long story. I never pushed her, because a little part of me liked having a unique name. My older sisters got away with pretty normal names. Kiara and Selina. Kiara is the outdoorsy one. Selina's the perfect one. Except that she isn't, at least not always. More on that later.

What do I look like? Well, I'll describe myself for you. I have average shaped eyes, not almond shaped like my Housemate Lily, not slightly slanted like my half-Chinese roommate Kira, just your standard English Anglo-Saxon face and eyes. My eyes are somewhere in between blue and grey, which unfortunately makes me appear to be perpetually about to cry. I have a standard English peaches-and-cream complexion, like Selina, but unlike Kiara, which unfortunately means I burn really easily and really fast in the sun. And let me tell you, it's not a pretty sight. I'm a little short for my age, which is just seventeen, but the French have a nice word for it: petite. It sounds so much better like that, don't you think? I'm a little chestier than is usual for my height and weight. I'm really slim. My mum teases me because I eat a lot, but still keep my figure. The truth is that I don't know how I stay in shape. Lastly, my hair. I don't have my sister Selina's perfect, glossy, golden, flyaway curls, but I do like my hair. It's my favorite of all my features. It's jet black with gentle curls, mostly wavy.

What am I like? Everyone says that I'm very sweet and kind. I'm not, at least, not anymore than anyone else is. I'm dreadfully shy. It means that I have trouble making friends and raising my hand in class. I stammer a lot, and blush, which amuses my roommates a lot, and frustrates the teachers.

Where do I go to school? I'm in my seventh and last year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I was Sorted into Gryffindor in my first year, which I'm sure must have been a mistake on the part of the Sorting Hat as I'm not brave at all.

Who are my roommates? I room with three other girls: Charlotte, Rose, and Kira. Charlotte is pure English, like me. She has a sort-of stuck up air about her and she's very bossy. She's always fancying this boy or that. Merlin help you if you get between her and her boy. Charlotte has glossy brown hair that stretches nearly all the way down her back. Charlotte is really proud of her hair, but she hates that it's pin straight, so she curls it every night. If I hadn't shared a room with her for the past six years, I would have thought that her hair actually was curly. Her eyes are hazel, edged with very long lashes, because Charlotte is always using mascara. Charlotte isn't stupid but she doesn't put a lot of effort into her schoolwork, so her grades are always mediocre. I mentioned Kira before. Kira is half-English and half-Chinese. Her mother is Chinese and her father's English. Kira has watered down Asian features. She has slightly slanted eyes, and silky black hair that's even straighter than Charlotte's. Her eyes are blue like the sky in summer. Kira gets better grades than Charlotte but her grades are still closer to mediocre than good. She's a bit mean. That is she makes fun of other people and laughs when they're in trouble. But she is loyal to Charlotte and Rose, so I guess she's a true Gryffindor. Rose is the nicest of the three. She has reddish-blonde hair and big, green eyes like limes. Rose will sometimes talk to me, seriously, about books or schoolwork, but only when Charlotte and Kira aren't around. She's very serious, and gets pretty good grades.

Who are my Housemates? My Housemates are all the other Gryffindors, years one through seven.

Who are my Gryffindor Yearmates? Oh, well, there are eighteen Gryffindors this year. That sounds like a large number, but last year there were twenty. My Gryffindor Yearmates are: James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin (our Prefect), Peter Pettigrew, Rose Andrews, Kira Foster, Charlotte Graham, Lily Evans (our other Prefect), Marlene McKinnon, Dorcas Meadowes, Emmeline Vance, Mary Macdonald, Benjamin Fenwick, Roger Abercrombie, Joseph Carmichael, Hari Patil, and Gregory Vane. And me.

What's my favorite subject? That's difficult. Potions is the easiest, because it's just like cooking with Mum. Defense Against the Dark Arts, or as we usually call it - Defense, is the most useful considering what is going on in the world around us today. Charms is really fun, and Professor Flitwick is one of the nicest professors we have. But I think that my favorite subject of all is probably Transfiguration. It definitely isn't the easiest class or the most fun, seeing as Professor McGonagall, who is also Gryffindor's Head of House, is quite strict. I never quite got over the excitement and that feeling of control when I changed a match into a needle in my first Transfiguration class. I was the first to get it right.

What kind of grades do I get? I have the third highest overall grade in the Year. That doesn't sound all that amazing but it's actually quite good because there are seventy-two students in our Year. I'm always in the top five grades in every class I take. I have the second highest grade in the Year in Charms, I have the first highest grade in the Year in Transfiguration, I have the third highest grade in the Year in Potions, I have the fourth highest grade in the Year in Defense, I have the fifth highest grade in the Year in Astronomy, and I have the third highest grade in Herbology. Yikes, I didn't mean to sound like I'm bragging.

Where am I now? I'm upstairs in the bathroom, brushing my teeth after breakfast. Mum and Da are waiting downstairs to take me to the station - King's Cross, that is. I have my apparition license already, since I was old enough when we had lessons last year. I think it is a sentimental thing.

I peered into the bathroom mirror. I looked pretty much the same as usual, not overly groomed but neat and presentable, which was nice since I only woke up twenty minutes ago. Luckily, I was all packed last night, so all I had had to do was get dressed and have breakfast. My alarm hadn't gone off, so Mum had to rush in and wake me up, which meant I took forever to get up, which meant I had just finished breakfast.

And right now, I was brushing my teeth. My teeth are pretty white and healthy, so you might think that I didn't need to brush them this much. But brushing my teeth for fifteen minutes every morning after breakfast and another fifteen after dinner was how my teeth got to be this shiny and white.

"Kit! KITLANA!" Mum called, exasperated. "Hurry! Your teeth are fine. We're going to be late." See? Did I not just predict that she would say that?

"Nearly done, Mum." I called back, taking the toothbrush out of my mouth and rinsing it in cold water. I put my toothbrush, which was blue with white spots, into the toothbrush tree. It looked very happy there next to my mum's sparkly silver toothbrush and my da's olive green toothbrush. Okay, maybe it didn't really look happy. It's just a toothbrush. Who knows if it has feelings? But I kind of liked to pretend. I spit the toothpaste out of my mouth, inhaled a gulp of cold water, and spit it back out into the bathroom sink. I straightened my sweater. I was dressed in a cream colored sweater, over a short sleeved white button down, with a dark purple velvet skirt, which stopped just past my knees, and black leather boots, which had a slight heel. I smoothed my skirt, then flicked off the light switch, and raced out of the bathroom and down the stairs.

"Finally." Mum said, but she had a smile on her face. She grabbed her purse, and tossed Da the house keys.

Da caught the keys Mum tossed him, without looking. I wished I could do that. "Kit, I can't believe you're seventeen already. You're old enough to get a job, to drink, to live alone." He teared up a little. "I feel like I lost my little girl. My little girl's all grown-up."

"Oh, Da." I said, and rushed over to hug him. "Don't be silly. I haven't taken my N.E.W.T.s yet, I can't get a job. And I'm not ready to live alone." Da's a lot more sentimental than Mum. Kiara, Selina, and I all take after Mum a bit more than Da in the sentimental department.

"Alright, alright, you two." Mum said. She was holding the front door open. I untangled myself from Da, and walked out the front door. Da came out last, levitating my trunk for me. Once the three of us were out of the house, Mum turned around and locked up the house.

"_Colloportus_." She said firmly. The latches of the windows locked themselves and the locks on the front door snapped themselves into place.

Da set the trunk down onto the lawn. "Kit, would you prefer to Side-Along with your Mum, or with me?"

I scuffed at the grass with one of my boots. "I'll go with Mum, I guess."

Mum smiled and offered me her arm. "That works for me." She said. I gripped her arm, only to feel it twist away, so I redoubled my grip. Everything went black, and I felt like I was being pressed very hard in all different directions. I felt that brief feeling of being unable to breathe, almost like iron bands were fastening around my chest. My eyeballs tried to force themselves into the back of my head and my ear-drums were being shoved into the back of my skull. And we were there. That's Side-Along Apparition for you. Standard Apparition is a lot less painful.

I rubbed at my eyes, which always felt rather sore after Side-Along. We stood in back of King's Cross station. Obviously, we couldn't Apparate directly in front of the station because then all the Muggles would see us.

I yawned, covering my mouth, and followed Mum around to the front of the station. Da brought up the rear, carrying my trunk. I knew better than to offer to help. He'd take it as a personal offense.

We walked into the terminal, and began to walk in the direction of Platforms 9 and 10. In the middle, though most people don't know, lies Platform 9 and 3/4. Mum and Da found me a trolley, and we loaded my trunk onto it.

This would be my last time boarding the Hogwarts Express for the beginning of a term. I was really excited. Seventh year was supposed to be the hardest, but also the most fun. Honestly, a bit of hard work didn't frighten me.

Mum and Da agreed that I should go first. I didn't argue. I pushed the trolley through the brick wall in between the two platforms. I flinched, and as usual, instead of hitting myself in the face with a wall of bricks, I was greeted by an airy sunlit platform. A sign hanging above my head read Platform 9 and 3/4.

I beamed. I may sound like a loser for wanting to go back to school, but at school no one told me when to go to bed or what to eat for dinner and Mum and Da weren't there to treat me like a baby. I was just like everyone else.

Mum and Da made their way over to me. Mum adjusted my collar. Da gave me money for the ride. "Here." He said. "Five galleons, twenty sickles, and fifty knuts." Da is notoriously bad at getting rid of change.

I took the coins and stored them away in my wallet. "Thanks, Da." I said, as I stuffed the wallet back into one of the pockets of my skirt.

Mum hugged me, whispering reminders of my promise to write her at least once a week. Da hugged me, telling me to owl him if I had any kind of trouble at school at all. I promised them both that I would, and then levitating my trunk, because I was seventeen which meant I could do magic outside school!, I mounted the train steps waving goodbyes.


	2. All Together Now

**A Taste of Honey**

**by ~ Princess Rosamunde**

* * *

><p><strong>[AN: A brief disclaimer. None of the familiar characters or setting are my own. They belong instead to the most talented, J.K. Rowling. Additionally, you may notice as you read, that Kit as the narrator stresses the beauty or attractiveness in others. The reason for this is that she is insecure about her own appearance (and talents).]**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Two: All Together Now<strong>

As the train rocketed away from Platform 9 and 3/4, I made my way through the corridor, dragging my trunk along behind me. I needed to find a compartment with people that I knew but not too many people and it depended on which people.

I heard Cecelia Fletcher titter and then remark, "Sirius, you are too funny," from within one of the compartments, so I quickened my pace. Cecelia Fletcher is widely acclaimed as the third prettiest girl in the school. Ridiculous, I know, that the guys at our school have ranked everyone. In any case, despite holding that title, second only to Lily Evans and Kala Sarin, Cecelia is, well, to put it plainly: She's dumb. She's stunning; I wish I looked like her. She has perfectly fluffy and curly brown hair, a heart-shaped face, generous curves, and big brown eyes. She's nice. She's a flirt. She's friendly. But she's dumb. Truthfully, the only reason I think that she passed last year is because she cheats.

And the Sirius she mentioned is Sirius Black, one of my Yearmates. He's gorgeous. Utterly beautiful. He has black hair that falls into his face with a sort of casual elegance and grey eyes that always seem to be full of mischief. He has a fit body because he plays Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. He's widely considered the best looking guy in our school, although some would argue that that title should be awarded to his best friend, James Potter. I know, I know. My school is so silly. But I love it that way. James Potter is very good looking as well, although he's hung up on Lily Evans, which makes him less available. Looks aren't everything, though. Sirius Black can be a quite a bully, his humor tends to be a bit twisted, and both he and James Potter have fairly large egos.

I didn't want to go inside that compartment because I knew exactly what was going on. Sirius and Cecelia were flirting intensely, then they'd snog, and maybe a bit more because Cecelia will snog any male, and Sirius is a notorious womanizer. How unwelcome would _I_ be?

I continued walking until I spotted a nearly empty compartment. Sitting inside were Emmeline Vance and Mary MacDonald. This was the perfect compartment. Both Emmeline and Mary were fairly quiet girls, that is I wouldn't feel too out of place, and they had both always been friendly towards me in the past.

I slid open the glass compartment door. Mary and Emmeline looked up. "Ummm, i-is it okay if I s-sit with you?" I stammered. My stammering was always at its worst right when we went back to school.

Mary smiled. "Of course. Sit down. Emmeline and I were just talking about Lily and James."

Emmeline nodded. "Would you like a chocoball?" She offered, lifting up a small box of them. "Benjy got them for me, and I couldn't possibly eat them all."

I set my trunk down beside the door, and took a seat across from Emmeline and Mary.

"S-sure." I said, picking a chocoball from the box. "T-thank you." I bit into it, tasting the strawberry mousse and clotted cream under the thin layer of chocolate. Mmmm, this was so bad for me but it tasted so very good.

"So," Emmeline went on. "Kit, I don't know if you've heard. Lily's Head Girl and James is Head Boy." I nodded my head. I hadn't actually. Lily as Head Girl was no surprise. Star student, prefect, well-behaved with leadership qualities. Everyone had to have expected Lily to receive the position. James, on the other hand, was a surprise. He's a troublemaker and he wasn't a prefect. Not to mention that he and Lily did _not_ usually get along. They'd made a truce last year but all the same, I had been fairly sure Remus was going to be this year's Head Boy. I wondered what Dumbledore was thinking.

"Lily and James are inheriting a big legacy. Remember Alice and Frank, last year?" Mary mused. She was talking about last year's Head Girl and Boy, Alice Prewett, who had been a Ravenclaw, and Frank Longbottom, who had been a Gryffindor. Alice was like everyone's ideal big sister. She and Frank had fostered a lot of Inter-House friendships.

"Alice and Lily were close, though, Mary." Emmeline reminded her. "There will be even more pressure for her to keep up Alice's legacy. Did you know Alice?" She directed the last at me. Inside I bristled with indignation. Alice and I may not have been very close, but she was my cousin. I'd had my first kiss at age thirteen at Alice's parents' Christmas party. Her da was my mum's brother. Know Alice, really.

"Y-yes. I knew Alice." I said, shyly, wishing I had the courage to say what I thought out loud.

"Who will replace Lily as seventh year prefect?" Mary wondered aloud, snatching up another one of Emmeline's chocoballs for herself. I let out a nervous cough. The position had been offered to me but I'd declined it. I could barely talk to my professors, so how was I expected to discipline my Yearmates?

"M-Marlene or D-Dorcas, probably." I said, making sure to draw attention away from myself and assuming that neither Mary nor Emmeline had been offered the position.

"Marlene?" Emmeline snorted. "Don't get me wrong, I love Marlene, but she's not prefect material. It'll be Dorcas for sure."

Mary stood up, brushing lint off her jeans, and flounced back down on the seat. "Remember when Lily found out who the Head Boy was?" She smirked. "She was furious out of her mind. What do you think Dumbledore was thinking?"

Emmeline pressed her face against the glass. "She was fuming, that's for sure. Who knows what Dumbledore is thinking at any time? Let's go find Marlene and Dorcas. Lily'll be at the Prefect meeting, and there's nothing to do here."

Mary repositioned herself, so that she was lying down. "Naw, Emmy, I'm going to just stay here. You can get the girls if you'd like."

Emmeline rolled her eyes. "You are so incredibly lazy, Mary. Alright, I'll go." She clambered up off the seat, and walked out of the compartment.

The door slammed shut behind her. Mary sat up, crossing her legs. "Let's be silly and gossipy." She said. "Emmy's dating Benjy now. They got together over the summer. Don't tell Emmy I told you. I mean, it's not like she wouldn't want me to tell you but she might get mad that I told you the moment she left."

Mary didn't need to worry. I could keep secrets. After all, I'd kept one for nearly seven years now.

"Now, it's your turn." Mary said. She was close enough that I could see almost all of the faint freckles on her face. "What's your hot gossip?"

"Umm." I felt like such an idiot. I was always out of the loop because I was too shy to talk to people most of the time. "Sirius Black is going to get with Cecelia Fletcher." I blurted out. "I h-heard them on my w-way over."

Mary laughed. "Anyone and Sirius is hardly exciting, but I'll let that pass. Let's see. What else can we do?" She sighed, and twirled a strand of her dark brown hair around her finger.

Mary got bored really easily. She couldn't sit still, and fidgeted all the time in class. She couldn't pay attention in class, as she was always daydreaming. I knew because she got that dreamy, faraway look in her eyes. I think Mary is very pretty. She has olive green eyes, really good skin, I know that sounds weird but trust me if you met her you'd agree, a good figure, and really nice hair. "Oh, okay. How about marry, shag, kill? You do know how to play, right?" She tacked the last on, hastily.

I nodded. I may not have been in the loop but I wasn't that out of it. "Y-yes."

Mary flattened her hands out, and looked at her nails. "Alex. James. Sirius."

I ducked my head and pretended to be smoothing a crease in my skirt to hide my blush. "I-I-I." I hated my stammering and my shyness. I didn't even know why I was so shy. "K-kill J-James. M-marry A-Alex. Shag Sirius." I looked up again to see how Mary was going to react.

"Relax." She laughed. "I dated Sirius, remember? It's no big deal. I think I'd probably kill Sirius, marry Alex, and shag James. Of course, that would never happen in real life because James is too busy stalking Lily's life." This time we both laughed. It was so nice that Mary was talking to me. I knew it was probably just because Emmeline and the other girls weren't here, but still. "Shall we do another one?" Mary asked.

I didn't get a chance to answer because just then Emmeline and Marlene came into our compartment.

"Party's here times two." Marlene said. "Just kidding. I have the most annoying cousin who says that whenever she walks into the room. I almost slapped her half a dozen times."

"Where's Dorcas?" Mary asked, jumping up to hug Marlene, who she hadn't seen since the end of last year.

"She's at the prefect meeting." Emmeline said, settling down next to me with a copy of _Witch Weekly_.

Marlene and Mary sat down together, catching up on what had happened since they last saw each other. "Emmy, did you tell Marlie about you and Benjy?" Mary asked, abruptly.

"Yeah, I did." Emmeline said from behind her copy of _Witch Weekly_. "I was going to wait until we were in our dorm but I figured you'd tell her if I didn't."

Mary pouted. "I'm not that much of a gossip, am I?" She asked. Marlene raised her eyebrows. "Okay, fine, fine. Don't answer that."

She turned back to Marlene, and soon they were chatting about some friend of theirs in Paris. Emmeline was engrossed in her magazine. I sighed and pulled out my book. Normally, I loved to read, but now I kind of wished I was still talking to Mary.

Around an hour passed. I glanced out the window; it was beginning to get dark outside.

Lily opened the compartment door and walked in. "Hey, girls." She had a smile on her face. Lily, the prettiest girl in our school, has almond shaped emerald eyes, creamy porcelain skin, cinnamon freckles, a mane of auburn hair, and a figure any girl would kill for.

"Lilyyy!" Mary exclaimed, bouncing up like a puppy to greet her friend.

"Hey, Head Girl." Marlene chimed in.

Emmeline dropped her magazine and rushed to be the first to hug Lily.

I had the worst feeling of intruding. Lily, Marlene, Mary, and Emmeline (and Dorcas) are best friends, and they know everything about each other. I didn't belong here. I clutched my book, and didn't know what to do.

"Kit." Lily said, putting her arms on her hips. "Don't I get a hug from you too?"

I smiled, a little smile, but still a smile, and walked over to hug her. This is precisely why Lily's popular. She's just that nice.

I wrapped my arms loosely around Lily's slender, tall frame. She tugged me in close and squeezed me. She released me and then set up court in the compartment.

"I haven't had a chance to see any of you girls since last term. I'm so glad that we're all together now. Tell me all that's new." Lily demanded, but it was Lily and it was so good-natured that nobody minded.

Emmeline fussed with her hair. "Of course, Lily. Just, where's Dorcas?" She worried.

Lily flashed one of her glowing smiles. "Oh, Dorcas is with Remus. They're probably in some dark compartment alone. If you get my drift." Lily said mischievously. "They left the prefect meeting together. Dorcas promised she'd be here soon, though."

The corners of Emmeline's mouth twitched up. She was satisfied with the words of Lily the Queen. "Well, then I guess." She began, shyly. "Benjy and I are together. It happened over the summer."

Lily squealed. "Oh, that's perfect! You absolute doll!" Lily hugged Emmeline. "Tell me everything." She insisted. Emmeline's cheeks were flushed pink, but I thought she was liking the attention a lot. Emmeline told Lily the whole story.

"Marlie?" Lily asked, after receiving sufficient details from Emmeline. "Any men in your life?"

Marlene quirked one eyebrow up. "No. I snogged my cousin's best friend. It was okay. I just needed a good snog, is all."

Mary shrieked and threw her jacket at Marlene. "You little heartbreaker, Marlie!" Lily and Emmeline laughed. Marlene looked a little embarrassed.

Lily slung an arm around Marlene's shoulder. "Marlie, as long as you take care of your own heart, I don't care how many you break."

I understood now why Lily is so well-liked and sought after. You craved her approval.

"Mary, how's your Mum?" Lily asked, seriously. "Is she any better? I loved the cookies that she made for my birthday. I adore your Mum."

There were shouts from the other two, declaring their love for Mary's mum, too.

Mary tried to smile. "She's some better. She wanted to know how come you girls weren't screaming and running through the house. I'll tell her how much you liked the cookies. She'll be happy."

I didn't know exactly what was wrong with Mary's mum but from the way that she and Lily were talking, it sounded serious.

"We'll send her chocolates from Hogsmeade." Marlene declared.

"And flowers." Emmeline chimed in.

The atmosphere in the compartment was very quiet and sad right now. I didn't know what to say. I wanted to say something comforting to Mary, but I was afraid it'd come off as insincere.

Remus and Dorcas showed up on the other side of the glass door. Remus slid it open. "Hi, Lily, Marlene, Mary, Emmeline, Kit." He said, easily.

Dorcas stepped in. "Hey." She said, breathlessly. "Lily, you left really fast. James wanted to talk to you."

Lily rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "God, seriously? We were talking literally five minutes ago. He's not planning on asking me out, is he?" She said this last bit sarcastically but I could hear a little worry in her voice.

"No, no." Remus promised. "Nothing like that at all. Give him a chance to talk to you, Lily. Well, I'm going to leave Dorcas with you. Take care of her, please." He planted a quick kiss on Dorcas' lips, and left the compartment.

"Awww." Lily and Mary said, collectively. They shared a grin when they realised that they had awwed simultaneously.

Dorcas blushed. "We're nearly at Hogsmeade. We should put on our uniforms."

"Okay." Mary said, pulling off her shirt.

"Mary!" Emmeline said, scandalized. "Don't strip in front of me."

"Why not?" Mary asked, pulling her robes on over her head. "We're all girls here. Besides, you know you like it." She teased.

"Uh-um. I-I'm g-going to go to the bathroom." I whispered, sure that I was scarlet, bundling up my robes, and nearly running out of the compartment.

I heard them whispering as I leaned against the wall next to the compartment. From this angle they couldn't see me.

"Mary!" Lily hissed. "It's one thing to tease Emmy, who knows what you're like, but I think you embarrassed Kit."

"I didn't mean to." Mary whispered. "I'm sorry. How was I supposed to know? I'll be very polite and normal when she comes back, I promise."

I rushed to the nearest bathroom, and latched the door behind me. I didn't care that the other girls were stripping. I mean we _were_ all girls. It's not that I was embarrassed about my body either. At least not really, it's just that there were fading black and blues along both my arms and my stomach was still a little sore. I couldn't possibly let anyone see or they'd ask questions. And I couldn't mess this up. I pulled off my sweater, followed by my button-down. My skin got goose bumps. Skin looks really weird when there are goose bumps on your black and blues. I pulled my robes on, straightened them while looking in the mirror, and gathered up my clothes.

I unlatched the door, and rushed down the corridor. I passed a Slytherin in my Year, Avery. I nearly squeaked and tried to pass by without him seeing.

"Pathetic excuse for a pureblood." Avery muttered. Blood rushed to my cheeks but I ignored him.

I reentered the compartment. Mary offered me a peppermint. I accepted her peace offering even though I actually hate the taste of peppermints. It wasn't even her fault. I wasn't mad, but I couldn't explain. Everyone else was already dressed.

With a lurch, the train stopped. The six of us rushed out of the compartment, joining the throngs of students pushing to get off the train.

Even from Hogsmeade, Hogwarts towered up, dominating the landscape. This was home.


	3. September in the Rain

**A Taste of Honey**

**by ~ Princess Rosamunde**

**A/N: I am so, so sorry that it's been forever since I've updated. I haven't forgotten this story, I promise. I just have been dealing with A.P.s and SAT IIs. But here we are, finally, with a new chapter of A Taste of Honey. Thank you to taliathecat, and Adam Badger for their reviews. As always, reviews are welcome and encouraged. But now, without much ado...I present to you the third chapter of AToH.**

**Chapter Three: September in the Rain**

"Let's get a carriage." Marlene said as the rest of the school minus the first years rushed past us, nearly sweeping some (read: me) of us away.

"But, Marlie. There are six of us and the carriages seat four." Mary pointed out. "Five if we squeezed, maybe."

"Oh, look! There's Remus." Dorcas smiled, nodding towards Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, and Peter Pettigrew as the four came towards us. "I'll ride with him, Lily will you sit with us and James?" She asked.

"Fine. Fine." Lily grumbled, and she and Dorcas walked over to the boys.

I stood beside Marlene and Mary and Emmeline as Dorcas and Lily conferred with the boys. Lily, James, Dorcas, and Remus climbed into a carriage together. We all noticed as James offered to help Lily into the carriage, which she refused, giving him a dirty look. From behind my back came a bark of laughter. I jumped, startled, and whirled around.

Marlene and Mary shared a look of contempt.

"Hi, Sirius." Emmeline said, for that's who it was. Pudgy Peter Pettigrew was glued to his side.

"Hello, ladies." Sirius said, attempting to sound suave. And succeeding, I might add, as if his ego needed more of a boost. "My apologies, uh, Susie?" I looked around, confused. Who was Susie?

"No, Black, you idiot!" Marlene spat out. "This is Kit, short for Kitlana. She's Charlotte's roommate. Remember? Oh, wait, I forgot, all females look the same to you!" She grabbed Emmeline's arm and stomped off.

I thought Marlene was being a bit hypocritical. _She_ barely knew who I was until today.

"Merlin, what did I do to her?" Sirius wondered.

Mary shot him a bitter look. "What do you think you did to her, Sirius?"

"Oh, right, that." Sirius shifted, uncomfortable. "I thought maybe there was something else-"

"Isn't that enough?" Mary said in a sort of dangerously quiet kind of voice.

"Of course." Sirius said and tried to change the subject. "Sincerest apologies, Kitlana. I can't believe I've never seen you before. You are a seventh year, right?"

I blushed, bright red. For some reason, the way Sirius had said my name makes it sound different, more me but prettier somehow. Probably because he was used to sweet-talking girls. "Y-yes, o-of c-c-course." I stammered out.

"Should we maybe, um, get in the carriage?" Peter said, speaking for the first time.

"Oh, Pete." Sirius said, ruffling Peter's hair. "Hungry already?"

Peter is a good head shorter than Sirius, so Sirius could get away with that. Peter pulled his head away.

"He has a good point." Mary said, crossing her arms. "Lily's carriage is gone and so is Marlene and Emmeline's."

"Alright." Sirius said, reaching out and grabbing the rail of the nearest carriage and climbing up the steps into the interior of the carriage. "Coming?" He asked, calling from inside the carriage.

Mary grumbled something about "the things I do for Marlene" and climbed up the steps of the carriage too. I followed her up, with Peter bringing up the end.

By the time I sat down, the carriage had begun to move and Peter tripped on the last stair, nearly falling on me. Sirius pulled at Peter's arm at the last moment, causing Peter to fall into the last open seat beside him.

"Sorry!" Peter squeaked, a faint blush washing over his face.

For once, I didn't blush. "I-It's fine."

We sat for awhile in a bit of awkward silence, me and Mary sitting across from Peter and Sirius. Sirius began to fidget. Like Mary, he could never sit still. Not in class, and not really anywhere else. "It's kind of dark in here." Sirius remarked.

"I guess." Mary snapped.

"We c-could o-open the r-roof." I offered. I didn't understand why Mary seemed to hate Sirius so much.

Sirius beamed at me, a wide almost doggy grin, where all pretenses vanish from his face. He was no longer acting - just himself, without façades. I think I like him better this way, I thought. He seemed more human, less perfect, more like me.

While I'd been musing to myself, Sirius had climbed up onto his seat and was yanking at the cords that controlled the inner workings of opening and closing the carriage's roof. With a final tug, the roof burst open, revealing a vast expense of darkening sky.

"Ahhhh, fresh air." Sirius breathed in deeply, once again fooling around.

Mary snorted.

And then, just like that, at the drop of a hat, rain began to fall from the sky. September in the rain. It was so very beautiful.

At least until it began to pour.

"Oh, shit!" Sirius cursed and stood up again to try to draw the ceiling close again. "Mary, goddamn it!" He shouted. "Help me here!"

Mary stood up as well, wet hair slopping into her face. "I'm trying, I'm trying!" She screeched. "Kit, hold this."

I climbed up beside her, and held the cord she indicated. Fumbling with the rest of the mess of cords, she yanked at them. Slowly, slowly, the half of the roof on our side began to come down once more.

Peter and Sirius were having a great deal more luck on their side than ours. Their half of the roof was just about shut. Sirius joined Mary and I on our side and grabbed the cords from Mary, tying the cords from each side together with a complex knot.

Mary slid back down onto the seat next to me. She smiled at me. Somehow she managed to still be very pretty with her messy wet hair and damp uniform. My hair was straggly and ugly. The curls had loosened themselves and I looked terrible.

"H-hang on." I said, barely stuttering. I pulled my wand from my robe pocket and pointed it at Mary. "_Exaresco_." For some reason, I generally didn't stammer when casting spells. The water evaporated from Mary's uniform and hair, leaving her as dry as before the rain. Unfortunately, I didn't have any skill with glamour charms, so her hair stayed a mess.

But Mary didn't seem to mind. "Thanks, Kit. Here, I'll do you." She pointed her wand at me. I heard the familiar incantation and a warm feeling crawled over me, leaving me dry and warm.

"Thanks, Ma-" I began, but she wasn't done.

With a second wave of her wand, she exclaimed, "_Cirratus!_"

At her words, my hair jumped back up into bouncy curls. I touched my hair; the curls were a little tighter than normal, but I kind of liked it. "T-thanks."

She smiled back, and then set to work on her own hair. Mary _definitely_ knew glamour charms.

I liked her, I really liked her. I didn't know why. It was probably a little bit late to be realising this. She already had her set group of friends - not that I would have wanted to take her away from them - and this was our last year at Hogwarts.

Right then and there I made a promise to myself that this year would be different. This year I would make friends, I wouldn't focus entirely on schoolwork, I'd do stupid things just because they were fun, and I _would not be shy_.

Having decided this, I relaxed a little and watched as Peter and Sirius began a serious debate as to whether Pride of Portree (Sirius) or the Ballycastle Bats (Peter) were a better team. This appeared to be a long-standing argument and I suspected it was something the two do when there was nothing else at hand.

Oh, dear, I hoped that didn't mean Mary and I were too boring. Or rather, _I _was too boring. Mary was having fun with glamour and colour change charms and was just ignoring Sirius. It also didn't help that I was not very enthusiastic about sports, and hadn't the time to memorize statistics and teams and players' names, so I couldn't contribute to the conversation.

I told myself that this was my challenge, a first step. But I couldn't bring myself to speak. I got like this sometimes. My lips paralyzed and I couldn't seem to form any words. I didn't know why this happened or why it happened at some times and not others or why I stammered and stuttered so much.

When I was about twelve, after it had been a year since my stuttering and stammering had begun and I had become much quieter and withdrawn and it seemed as though these things were not going to let up, my parents decided to take me to go see a Healer. I remember the Healer examined me, and proclaimed me entirely healthy to my parents. I had all my faculties, no problem with my vocal cords. No history of a concussion or anything. She, of course, saw no signs of abuse that might indicate a problem. Then she suggested the idea that I might somehow have had some sort of traumatic experience.

"That's absolutely preposterous." Had said my father.

"She's our baby." My mother added, upset. A screaming match broke out between the three of them but in the end the Healer had her way. She turned to me.

"Kitlana." She said, in a soft, honey-sweet voice. "Has anything happened to you? Have you been raped, abused, threatened, anything?" My voice caught in my throat. I didn't know what to say. Or rather, I knew what I _should_ say and I knew what I _couldn't_ say.

"Please, Kit." My mother begged. "If there's anything that - just tell us."

"_No_." I choked out the word; I had looked my mother in the face, and for the very first time in my life, I lied to her.

I told myself that in the carriage hardly counted. After all, the school year didn't start until tomorrow morning. I was very good at lying to myself. I knew that I was putting off beginning to make this year better than all the rest before it and that I _was_ being shy. Did this happen to other people - to Muggles - to Mums and Das? Had Mary stammered when she was little or had Sirius maybe had a lisp? Why did I react this way? Was it somehow a subconscious plea for someone to notice?

Never mind, I thought, there's no use psycho-analyzing yourself. "Um," I began to say, not quite sure what it was that I was going to say but forcing myself to speak. But before I could manage a single word, Peter interrupted.

"We're here!" He shouted, breaking off from a defensive statement about Ballycastle Bats player Finbar Quigley.

I joined Mary at the window on our side of the carriage, pushing aside the curtain in order to get that first glorious glimpse of Hogwarts Castle. Mary turned her face to look at me, and I saw that her face was awash with a joyful glow; it made her look prettier than ever. I realised that Hogwarts was probably home to her in much the same way as it was to me, and self-absorbed as I am, that surprised me. What could possibly have happened to Mary to make her feel that way?

"Isn't it perfect?" She asked, in a hushed whisper as though if she spoke louder the sight might fade or crumble.

"Perfect." I whispered back, although I couldn't help wondering whether Hogwarts would be there forever. What a silly thought. Of course it would. Regardless of whatever else was going on in the world, Hogwarts would always be a safe place.

The carriage shuddered to a stop and the four of us clambered out; all anxious, I thought, to be back at Hogwarts once more. All around us, fellow seventh years like ourselves and all the way down to the youngest -the second years; even I couldn't have been that small, could I?; talked, and shouted, and laughed, and yelled. One would have thought that the ride up in the carriages would have been long enough for conversation and conversation. It had certainly seemed like forever in our carriage, although perhaps that was merely because we had been talking very little.

I took a deep breath, even Hogwarts air tasted better.

"What are you doing?" Laughed Mary, as she watched me. I flashed through shades of pink, cherry, and scarlet, as my embarrassment grew. Merlin, stop embarrassing yourself! I scolded.

"The a-air." I said, pushing the words past my throat and out of my scarlet face. "E-even t-the air tast-tes di-different."

Mary breathed in dramatically. "_Very_ different." She teased me. But she wasn't being mean, so I felt better, turned less red, and smiled tentatively at her.

We made our way through the swarm of people together, entering the Great Hall. Sirius and Peter had disappeared, probably on purpose, though I couldn't say I blamed them. And talking to one person was a lot easier than three.

"Mary! Over here." Marlene called from the Gryffindor table, indicating the seat beside her. Lily and Emmeline seemed deep in conversation and Dorcas had her head perched on her hand, gazing at Remus as he and James discussed the responsibilities of being Head Boy.

I stopped walking. This was where it ended. How stupid of me to forget. Mary had only been talking to me and walking with me because her friends weren't around. Maybe even because she was nice, but she was not about to choose me over them or invite me over. I mean, why should she?

Mary didn't notice that I'd stopped walking or else she pretended not to, and she walked over to sit beside Marlene. Within minutes, the two were chattering away.

See, I told myself. This was what you got for being shy. Not that it did much good.

No matter how much I told myself I _would _not stammer, I _would_ not stutter, I _would_ not be shy, there was always a moment when I froze, and I didn't know how to say what was perfectly clear inside my head, out loud.

The Gryffindor table was mostly full. Of course, it could not be completely full until after the first years join our table, but there were only a few number of seats where I could sit without being awkwardly next to second and third and fourth years I didn't know or fifth years that I should know better but I didn't.

There was a seat across from Charlotte and next to Kira. It was not the greatest spot because Charlotte and Kira don't particularly like me. But I'd rather not be standing alone in the Great Hall, while everyone was seated. Everyone would stare, and I'd be very embarrassed.

I walked over quickly, and slid into the seat next to Kira, making my arms into a wall onto the table, and resting my chin on them. It was a very relaxed pose, but I usually found myself adopting it when I needed to pretend that I felt fine. It was also more likely to keep someone from bothering me. I looked less vulnerable-

"Roe, Lottie, let's talk about this later, okay?" Kira said loudly, looking straight at me. She curled up the edge of her lip, sneering at me. "When _certain_ people aren't around."

-and there went that theory. Uncried tears began to form in the corners of my eyes. I didn't know why I was so sensitive and I didn't know why Kira disliked me so much, but I knew one thing for certain: I absolutely, positively could not cry in front of her. It would make everything worse. She would know she could make me cry. She has said a lot of hateful things over the years, for no obvious reasons at least to me, maybe just to see how far she could go, but she'd never seen me cry in front of her.

There have been nights in our dormitory where I have cried myself to sleep, muffling the sound with my pillow. I'm sure Kira's heard that, although not all of that is because of things she's said. However, it is one thing for her to think she's made me cry because of muffled sounds that she's heard and a completely different one for her to see and to know that she can say something that will make me cry.

At least she had to stop talking for now, in order to clap for the first Gryffindor.

I kicked furiously at the bottom of my chair and blinked hard and fast. Think of something else, think of something else, I screamed at myself.

"Kit's not sitting with us." Lily remarked. "I thought I was nice to her. _Was_ I nice to her?" She worried.

The table erupted in a chorus of clapping as a new first year made Gryffindor.

"Yes, Lily." Chorused Mary, Marlene, Emmeline, and Dorcas once the clapping had finished. While the four loved Lily as she was their center and a great friend, sometimes her worries that she hadn't been nice enough were a little annoying. Honestly, who really cared how nice she had been to some nobody that she would probably never talk to again? While it was nice of her to care, they found it a little strange that she worried so much about something so small.

The Gryffindor table cheered and clapped again.

"She probably didn't want to intrude." Emmeline said, speaking up. "It's not hard to notice that the five of us are really close. She probably was just trying to be nice."

Lily frowned, a crinkle forming on her forehead. "I guess."

The other three sent Emmeline looks of gratitude. Now they could move on to more cheerful and frankly more interesting topics.

Mary opened her mouth to speak and then wisely waited until a fourth round of clapping had finished.

"I heard that Margaret Stewart and Dorian Shaw broke up this summer." Mary said.

"How could you possibly know that?" Marlene exploded. "We've been back at school for less than an hour."

Mary smiled calmly, playing with her fork. "I have my ways." She said, sounding teasingly mysterious.

After more clapping and cheering, the girls resumed talking.

"Mmm. Dorian Shaw." Dorcas nodded approvingly. "You going after that, Mary?"

Mary grinned. "I might."

Marlene scowled. "Not if I can get there first."

Emmeline clapped her hands. "A wager! Have we got a wager than?"

Lily laughed. "Aren't we a little too old for this?" She protested.

"Definitely." and "Yes". Agreed Marlene and Mary, grinning.

After more clapping died down, Dorcas took charge. "You draw up the contract and rules, Lil, and Emmy, you can write the final draft."

Emmeline sighed dramatically. "It's not my fault I have such beautiful handwriting. Everyone's always taking advantage of me."

Benjy leaned over, a few seats down. "Who is this taking advantage of you? I'm the only one with that right." He teased.

Emmeline turned a fuchsia color. "Benjy!" She groaned, pretending to be embarrassed. "We'll discuss this later."

Benjy winked at her and turned back to his conversation.

"You two are too cute." Marlene said, for once meaning this in a good way. She smirked at Emmeline.

"Ooh, Emmeline!" Dorcas teased. "Look at you, all pink and embarrassed."

"Oh, shut up!" Emmeline said, trying not to smile. "I hate you all!"

Lily smiled and opened her mouth to speak but never got a chance to because just then Professor Dumbledore signaled for quiet.

"Welcome back, old friends and new. There will be a time for speechmaking, but this is not yet it. Tuck in!"

Applause broke out from more than one table as food appeared out of nowhere and filled the five long tables.

I smiled a little bit. Hogwarts cooking is amazing and no matter how hard Mum tried, I always missed it when I was away from Hogwarts. I piled my plate high with roast chicken, sausages, steak, mashed potatoes, carrots, and fried tomatoes, and poured myself a glass of pumpkin juice. I took a sip of my pumpkin juice. It was icy and just perfect.

Professor Dumbledore stood up at the staff table almost immediately after the food cleared. Likewise, the talk and laughter throughout the Hall quieted almost immediately as well.

"As we are all well-fed and rested after another magnificent feast, I ask for a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices," said Dumbledore. "First-years ought to know that the Forbidden Forest is, as its name suggests, out-of-bounds to all students - and a few of our older students ought to know by now, too." James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter exchanged smirks.

"As is the village of Hogsmeade to all below third year. Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he says is the four-hundred-and-forty-fourth time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things; a list of which can be found in his office.

"We are very pleased to welcome a new member of staff this year, Professor Whitehorn"— Whitehorn stood up, a length of gleaming black hair, braided down her back, gleaming in the candlelight, as she smoothed her white robes and then sat back down — "our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

There was a smattering of polite but fairly unenthusiastic applause.

Dumbledore continued, "Those wishing to play for their House Quidditch teams should give their names to their Heads of House as usual. We are also looking for new Quidditch commentators, who should do likewise.

"Now, as everybody in this Hall must by this time know, Lord Voldemort and his followers are at large and gaining in strength."

"I cannot emphasize enough just how serious the present situation is, and how much care each and every one of us at Hogwarts must take to ensure that we remain safe. The castle's magical fortifications have been strengthened during the summer, we are protected in a number of new and more powerful ways, but we must still guard scrupulously against carelessness on the part of any student or member of staff. I urge you, therefore, to abide by any security restrictions that your teachers might impose upon you, however irksome they might appear to be — in particular, that you are not to be out of after hours. I implore you, should you notice anything strange or suspicious within or outside the castle, report it to a member of staff immediately. I trust you to conduct yourselves, always, with the utmost regard for your own and others' safety."

Dumbledore's blue eyes swept over us all before he smiled once more.

"And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Let us therefore say good night. Pip pip!"

There was a great deal of clattering and banging all around as everyone got ready to leave the Hall. I stood up as well but made sure to allow Kira, Charlotte, and Rose to get a _good_ deal ahead of me. The swarm of Gryffindors followed Lily and James (as Head Boy and Girl) out of the Great Hall, as they led us up to the Gryffindor tower.

"The password is Bronte." I heard Lily explain to the first years up front with her and James, facing the Fat Lady. "The password will change around every week or so, and is the only way to get into the Common Room. Do not give out the password to anyone outside of Gryffindor. That being said, if you do forget the password, you may ask James or myself or one of the prefects."

I allowed myself a little smile. Bronte, hmm. Lily must have picked the password. Though I'd only read a few Muggle books myself, I'd seen Lily's copies of the classics lying around the Common Room enough times to be sure of the name.

Lily, James, and the first years entered through the portrait hole, which swung shut behind them.

"Why can't we go in?" Charlotte whined. "Why do the firsties get to go first and why do we have to wait?"

I rolled my eyes at Charlotte's antics, and accidentally caught Phoebe Lin's eyes. She smiled at me, and then tilting her head a little at Charlotte, rolled her eyes too. I nodded, smiling. I didn't know Phoebe all that well; she was a sixth year and a member of the Slug Club like me, which was all I knew. But it was nice to know that I wasn't the only one who found Charlotte annoying.

"Charlotte, shut up!" Kira hissed under her breath, clearly embarrassed to be associated with her friend at moments like these.

The portrait hole swung open a second time and everyone clambered inside.

I looked around the Common Room, once inside, and noticed that it looked exactly the same. Such a reassuring thought.

I followed the girls up the stairs to the girls' dormitory and into my dorm, where my trunk was waiting.

Charlotte, Kira, and Rose had remained downstairs so for the time being I was alone.

I cast "_Alohomora_." My trunk unlocked and I opened it. "_Eximo_." I said and my clothes removed themselves from my trunk. Finally, I pronounced "_Sepono_", which caused my clothes to fold themselves and put themselves away in the drawers of the dresser that were mine and hung themselves in the wardrobe.

I stood beside the window, which gave a beautiful view of the forest and grounds below.

Home at last, I thought.


End file.
